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This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

Ever spent time trying to figure out Hickory High's box score the night it beat South Bend Central? What about arguing over who was better -- James Edwards or Bill Cartwright? Or determining the starting five for the Ken Bannister Memorial All-Ugly Team?

How good is Melo? He's hanging with the big boys out West.
Well, I have. I love arguing hoops. That's just me. So when Detroit drafted Darko over Carmelo last June, I felt like a lawyer handed a case I couldn't lose. This was a slam dunk. Not only had the Pistons pulled a Bartman, it was potentially a once-in-a-generation blunder -- right up there with Portland taking Bowie over MJ, or Coppola casting his daughter in The Godfather: Part III.

This isn't about Darko as much as it's about Melo. Ever notice how many Hall of Famers played in an NCAA championship game? This is no accident. Carrying your school to the title means something. Either you're a winner or you aren't. Throw in Bernard King's game, Dale Ellis' range, Magic's personality ... somehow, it still wasn't enough for the Pistons.

Like Paris Hilton, Melo was a sure thing. But teams can't help themselves from getting involved with the Darko du jour. NBA drafts are fueled by upside and more upside. Heck, if upside were a drug, every GM would be in rehab. Around draft time, you hear words like "long" and "athletic" much more often than "winner." One-on-one contests and jumping drills carry more weight than game tapes. Suddenly, someone like Reece Gaines is leapfrogging Josh Howard and Luke Walton. It happens every year, and nobody learns.

Maybe Darko is the wake-up call. Melo is averaging 24 since the break, and his impact on Denver's win total compares favorably with Larry Bird's on Boston's in 1980. And what about his age? At 19, Bird was driving a garbage truck, T-Mac was carrying Vince's water and even Kobe and KG were just getting their feet wet. But here's a baby-faced teen rejuvenating a scarred franchise in an impossibly tough conference.

And then there are the Pistons, one scorer away from being the equal of any of the bigwigs in the West. (Note: I'm in Vegas as I write this, and the Pistons are 10-1 to win the title. They'd be 5-2 with Carmelo. Don't blame me, I'm just the messenger.)

Pistons fans seem to be stuck in collective denial, like they're still hung over from drinking the Joe Dumars Kool-Aid. They all spout the same excuses:

1. We didn't need Melo. And why is that? Because they already had Tayshaun Prince. Tayshaun Prince?! That's like passing up a free Ferrari because you already own a Miata. I see no brewing NBA subplot more intriguing than Melo and LeBron (certainly not Tayshaun and LeBron) battling for supremacy of the East every season, with the possible exception of Canada decriminalizing pot. C'mon, Detroit, who would you rather watch? Is this even worth discussing?

Smile Darko, you've got the best seats in the house for the playoffs.
2. A bunch of teams wanted to trade up to get Darko, including Denver. Well, I'm definitely wrong now. NBA teams never screw up.

3. You always go big over small. That's fine, except in this case, small was a mortal lock, and big was an 18-year-old Serbian project. There are no guarantees with projects -- just ask Shawn Bradley, William Bedford, Benoit Benjamin ... I could go on for days. More important, the Pistons already had a good team that just needed another option. Carmelo would have pushed them over the hump. The East sucks. Their window is right now, dammit. I swear, I might have a seizure.

4. You need to be patient; just look at Dirk Nowitzki. Excellent point. Now, I'll let you in on a little secret ... like just about every other European, Dirk is soft. Hasn't gotten better in three years. Can't rebound when it matters. Still settles for his jumper instead of drawing contact. Couldn't guard Paul Mokeski ... now. I love watching the guy, but if he's your "best-case scenario" for passing up a future 10-time All-Star, you need to go back to the situation room.

And then there's this. How does it help Darko to spend his rookie season as a clumsy victory cigar, his frosted hair making him look like a misplaced troubled sitcom son? For godsakes, he's a sideshow. Meanwhile, Carmelo's success only illuminates Darko's failures. If the Pistons fall short this spring, the Carmelo backers will sprout like the pods in Invasion of the Body Snatchers. This sound like a healthy spot to put an impressionable rookie adjusting to life in America?

5. Have you seen our Pistons since the Rasheed trade? We're doing just fine without Carmelo, thanks. Yeah, but you're still not going to beat the Kings or the Lakers. Trust me on this. And even if you do, you won't have the privilege of watching Melo in person for the next 15 years.

Hey, there's always DirecTV.

Bill Simmons is a columnist for Page 2 and ESPN The Magazine, as well as one of the writers for "Jimmy Kimmel Live" on ABC

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

1. We didn't need Melo. And why is that? Because they already had Tayshaun Prince. Tayshaun Prince?! That's like passing up a free Ferrari because you already own a Miata. I see no brewing NBA subplot more intriguing than Melo and LeBron (certainly not Tayshaun and LeBron) battling for supremacy of the East every season, with the possible exception of Canada decriminalizing pot. C'mon, Detroit, who would you rather watch? Is this even worth discussing?

Tayshawn provides a guy that can defend many of the quick wing players in the NBA. Carmello can't defend the chair I'm sitting in. IS Mello better? DUH, of course. But Tay is a better FIT for this team.

2. A bunch of teams wanted to trade up to get Darko, including Denver. Well, I'm definitely wrong now. NBA teams never screw up.

Well Bill Simmons should be a GM on an NBA club then, since at the same time teams wanted to trade up for Darko, he apparently had the secret info Darko isnt going to pan out. Congrats, swami.

3. You always go big over small. That's fine, except in this case, small was a mortal lock, and big was an 18-year-old Serbian project. There are no guarantees with projects -- just ask Shawn Bradley, William Bedford, Benoit Benjamin ... I could go on for days. More important, the Pistons already had a good team that just needed another option. Carmelo would have pushed them over the hump. The East sucks. Their window is right now, dammit. I swear, I might have a seizure.

Um, the Pistons cant win the east now?

Darko has more basketball skills than those stiffs he mentioned. And this moron obviously doesn't know his history. William Bedford would have been a multiple-time allstar had he not had drug issues. It had nothign to do with lack of talent.

4. You need to be patient; just look at Dirk Nowitzki. Excellent point. Now, I'll let you in on a little secret ... like just about every other European, Dirk is soft. Hasn't gotten better in three years. Can't rebound when it matters. Still settles for his jumper instead of drawing contact. Couldn't guard Paul Mokeski ... now. I love watching the guy, but if he's your "best-case scenario" for passing up a future 10-time All-Star, you need to go back to the situation room.

Yeah, Dirk IS soft....but somehow, MELLO ISNT? Has he ever seen Mello play defense? The guy is a CREAM PUFF!

And now we find Billy is anti-european...um, all Euros are soft? Has he ever seen Andrei Kirilinko?

5. Have you seen our Pistons since the Rasheed trade? We're doing just fine without Carmelo, thanks. Yeah, but you're still not going to beat the Kings or the Lakers. Trust me on this. And even if you do, you won't have the privilege of watching Melo in person for the next 15 years.

If the Pistons are lifting the trophy in June I will paste this article to every messageboard in america. oooh, im REALLY scared of the no-defense kings and lakers!

"privilege" yeah, just like all the other 20ppg SFs that cant play defense in the NBA....Lebron is a privilege. Mello is just another all-star.

Bill Simmons is anti-detroit, he always has been. Nobody takes him seriously, which is why he's on page 2.

It wasn't about being the team everyone loved, it was about beating the teams everyone else loved.

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

There can be no doubt that Carmelo is going to be a great player. I would never put him on the same level as Jordon. The funny thing about Anthony is that he still has upside too. Even if Denver doesn't make the playoffs, their run this year has been unbelieveable and Carmelo has a lot to do with this.

This being said, it is way too early to label Darko as a bust. With the overwhelming small number of centers in the NBA and especially the East, he could become a great center and make Detroit look good yet in this draft.

If you remember when we drafted Rik Smits, the idea was that he would backup for a few years to learn the NBA game and then he would play full time. Unfortunately, injuries forced him to start too early and he had some rough times. If Darko turns out to be the scorer Rik Smits was, he will have a very nice career.

Still, it is valid to question not picking up Carmelo in the draft. It's possible Detroit wouldn't have pulled the trigger on the Rasheed trade if they would have already had the scoring ability of Carmelo.

Give at least 3 years before you label Darko a bust, but if you want to say that it was a bad choice, I can't argue with that.

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

Seems to me that people are forgetting Bill Simmons is a comedian who happens to be a big fan of Boston sports teams and the NBA in general. He's not a sportswriter, per se.

I always find his stuff hilarious, even the recycled jokes. He's no more or no less insightful than the typical season-ticket holder who's witnessed hundreds of games in person. In other words, he's on Page 2 for entertainment value, not to be taken seriously.

Why do the things that we treasure most, slip away in time
Till to the music we grow deaf, to God's beauty blind
Why do the things that connect us slowly pull us apart?
Till we fall away in our own darkness, a stranger to our own hearts
And life itself, rushing over me
Life itself, the wind in black elms,
Life itself in your heart and in your eyes, I can't make it without you

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

I read that in my ESPN magazine a few days ago. This guy is obviously blind and will be on the bandwagon soon. I don't know what's going to become of Darko; but I know one thing, it's worth the gamble. Here is why...

A Genie appears out of thin air. He gives you 2 options to choose from. You can pick whichever you like. He says to you "You have a choice, I can give you 1 million dollars cash right now or I will give you this scratch off lottery ticket. Let me tell you right now the scratch off has a 40% chance of paying off 500 million dollars. If you choose the scratch off, there is no turning back. Before making your choice, I must warn you that the whole process will be televised.

Scenario number 1: You are a bum. You lost your job 5 years ago, live on the streets and you are very sick .

Scenario number 2: You are Donald Trump making millions of dollars and you are living very comfortably in your life. You are real happy.

Now obviously, if you were the bum(Nuggets), you are not going to pass up a million cash to get you life back on track real quick.

If you were Donald Trump(Pistons) on the other hand, 1 million is a good amount of money but really wouldn't help too much. A chance to get 500 million on 40% chance sounds better because you have nothing to lose. If you win, you are buying real estate galor so you can obtain Bill Gates status. If you lose, eh, who cares. You are Donald Trump.

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

Okay, we've heard the Detroit people pound on 'Melo's D, but does anyone else feel that way. I remember discussing this a month or so ago, and there were a number of us who feel his D is adequate, especially for a 19 year old. Just think what a coach like Brown would do for him. And considering Brown is coaching, it's not like he'd be starting. He'd be instant offense off the bench, something Detroit still needs very much of.

Sadly, as seen here, Piston fans are in denial. Before the draft lottery, I prayed to the Basketball Jesus (Shuttlesworth, that is ) that Detroit wouldn't get the second pick from Memphis. Then they do, and they're stupid enough not to take Anthony. And back then, I had no clue that Carmelo would be this good. I did feel however that Darko was just Skita with a bad dye job.

Simmons echo's something I've been feeling lately, in that being "the next Dirk Diggler" isn't something to get crazy about. Instead, they could have had a guy who absolutely torched Artest the last time they played. But no, I guess it's better to win a title 5 years from now then one today. :

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

I read that in my ESPN magazine a few days ago. This guy is obviously blind and will be on the bandwagon soon. I don't know what's going to become of Darko; but I know one thing, it's worth the gamble. Here is why...

A Genie appears out of thin air. He gives you 2 options to choose from. You can pick whichever you like. He says to you "You have a choice, I can give you 1 million dollars cash right now or I will give you this scratch off lottery ticket. Let me tell you right now the scratch off has a 40% chance of paying off 500 million dollars. If you choose the scratch off, there is no turning back. Before making your choice, I must warn you that the whole process will be televised.

Scenario number 1: You are a bum. You lost your job 5 years ago, live on the streets and you are very sick .

Scenario number 2: You are Donald Trump making millions of dollars and you are living very comfortably in your life. You are real happy.

Now obviously, if you were the bum(Nuggets), you are not going to pass up a million cash to get you life back on track real quick.

If you were Donald Trump(Pistons) on the other hand, 1 million is a good amount of money but really wouldn't help too much. A chance to get 500 million on 40% chance sounds better because you have nothing to lose. If you win, you are buying real estate galor so you can obtain Bill Gates status. If you lose, eh, who cares. You are Donald Trump.

The problem with that analysis is that No matter how good Darko gets, he will NOT be 500 times better than Melo. Trust me...

The reason why I pick Melo in their situation is that starting Carmelo instead of Tayshaun and bringing Prince off the bench does NOT make Detroit a bad defensive team. Not at all. But it makes them a hell of a lot better offensively.

The reason why I say they made the right choice is that maybe if they already had Melo, they don't pull the trigger on Sheed. For whatever reason, it could have made things completely different. The Pistons +Sheed are a contender for the East. As a homer I say they have a 25% shot at beating the Pacers. The Pistons +Melo (-Sheed) do not have any chance to beat this Pacers team.

Hindsight is easy. No one knows how good Darko will become. Five years from now, there will be SOMEONE saying I told you so, but RITE NOW, no one can know for sure. But what we do kno is that the Pistons are doing fine with or without Carmelo, and you cannot say that they would be better now with or without him. No one can say. Simmons was just putting forth his opinion and exaggerating for comedy.

If I was Dumars, I pick Carmello. But thats just my opinion. There is a 50% chance that I would've made the wrong decision.

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

Okay, we've heard the Detroit people pound on 'Melo's D, but does anyone else feel that way. I remember discussing this a month or so ago, and there were a number of us who feel his D is adequate, especially for a 19 year old. Just think what a coach like Brown would do for him. And considering Brown is coaching, it's not like he'd be starting. He'd be instant offense off the bench, something Detroit still needs very much of.

Sadly, as seen here, Piston fans are in denial. Before the draft lottery, I prayed to the Basketball Jesus (Shuttlesworth, that is ) that Detroit wouldn't get the second pick from Memphis. Then they do, and they're stupid enough not to take Anthony. And back then, I had no clue that Carmelo would be this good. I did feel however that Darko was just Skita with a bad dye job.

Simmons echo's something I've been feeling lately, in that being "the next Dirk Diggler" isn't something to get crazy about. Instead, they could have had a guy who absolutely torched Artest the last time they played. But no, I guess it's better to win a title 5 years from now then one today. :

Great post, Kegboy. Pistons' fans absolutely refuse to hear this argument. Although I can understand why they're tired of hearing it.

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

I read that in my ESPN magazine a few days ago. This guy is obviously blind and will be on the bandwagon soon. I don't know what's going to become of Darko; but I know one thing, it's worth the gamble. Here is why...

A Genie appears out of thin air. He gives you 2 options to choose from. You can pick whichever you like. He says to you "You have a choice, I can give you 1 million dollars cash right now or I will give you this scratch off lottery ticket. Let me tell you right now the scratch off has a 40% chance of paying off 500 million dollars. If you choose the scratch off, there is no turning back. Before making your choice, I must warn you that the whole process will be televised.

Scenario number 1: You are a bum. You lost your job 5 years ago, live on the streets and you are very sick .

Scenario number 2: You are Donald Trump making millions of dollars and you are living very comfortably in your life. You are real happy.

Now obviously, if you were the bum(Nuggets), you are not going to pass up a million cash to get you life back on track real quick.

If you were Donald Trump(Pistons) on the other hand, 1 million is a good amount of money but really wouldn't help too much. A chance to get 500 million on 40% chance sounds better because you have nothing to lose. If you win, you are buying real estate galor so you can obtain Bill Gates status. If you lose, eh, who cares. You are Donald Trump.

The problem with that analysis is that No matter how good Darko gets, he will NOT be 500 times better than Melo. Trust me...

The reason why I pick Melo in their situation is that starting Carmelo instead of Tayshaun and bringing Prince off the bench does NOT make Detroit a bad defensive team. Not at all. But it makes them a hell of a lot better offensively.

The reason why I say they made the right choice is that maybe if they already had Melo, they don't pull the trigger on Sheed. For whatever reason, it could have made things completely different. The Pistons +Sheed are a contender for the East. As a homer I say they have a 25% shot at beating the Pacers. The Pistons +Melo (-Sheed) do not have any chance to beat this Pacers team.

Hindsight is easy. No one knows how good Darko will become. Five years from now, there will be SOMEONE saying I told you so, but RITE NOW, no one can know for sure. But what we do kno is that the Pistons are doing fine with or without Carmelo, and you cannot say that they would be better now with or without him. No one can say. Simmons was just putting forth his opinion and exaggerating for comedy.

If I was Dumars, I pick Carmello. But thats just my opinion. There is a 50% chance that I would've made the wrong decision.

He exaggerated, but the premise is still the same . . .

Detroit could afford to wait on Darko, Denver couldn't . . .

Pacers fants wont give Darko time, but Bender is being given 51 years to develop . . . too funny . . .

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

I read that in my ESPN magazine a few days ago. This guy is obviously blind and will be on the bandwagon soon. I don't know what's going to become of Darko; but I know one thing, it's worth the gamble. Here is why...

A Genie appears out of thin air. He gives you 2 options to choose from. You can pick whichever you like. He says to you "You have a choice, I can give you 1 million dollars cash right now or I will give you this scratch off lottery ticket. Let me tell you right now the scratch off has a 40% chance of paying off 500 million dollars. If you choose the scratch off, there is no turning back. Before making your choice, I must warn you that the whole process will be televised.

Scenario number 1: You are a bum. You lost your job 5 years ago, live on the streets and you are very sick .

Scenario number 2: You are Donald Trump making millions of dollars and you are living very comfortably in your life. You are real happy.

Now obviously, if you were the bum(Nuggets), you are not going to pass up a million cash to get you life back on track real quick.

If you were Donald Trump(Pistons) on the other hand, 1 million is a good amount of money but really wouldn't help too much. A chance to get 500 million on 40% chance sounds better because you have nothing to lose. If you win, you are buying real estate galor so you can obtain Bill Gates status. If you lose, eh, who cares. You are Donald Trump.

The problem with that analysis is that No matter how good Darko gets, he will NOT be 500 times better than Melo. Trust me...

The reason why I pick Melo in their situation is that starting Carmelo instead of Tayshaun and bringing Prince off the bench does NOT make Detroit a bad defensive team. Not at all. But it makes them a hell of a lot better offensively.

The reason why I say they made the right choice is that maybe if they already had Melo, they don't pull the trigger on Sheed. For whatever reason, it could have made things completely different. The Pistons +Sheed are a contender for the East. As a homer I say they have a 25% shot at beating the Pacers. The Pistons +Melo (-Sheed) do not have any chance to beat this Pacers team.

Hindsight is easy. No one knows how good Darko will become. Five years from now, there will be SOMEONE saying I told you so, but RITE NOW, no one can know for sure. But what we do kno is that the Pistons are doing fine with or without Carmelo, and you cannot say that they would be better now with or without him. No one can say. Simmons was just putting forth his opinion and exaggerating for comedy.

If I was Dumars, I pick Carmello. But thats just my opinion. There is a 50% chance that I would've made the wrong decision.

First, the story was exaggerated to get the point across. Second, quite honestly, you can't compare(Carmello will be better than Darko) the 2 because they play 2 different positions. That's like saying who is better, Shaq or Kobe Bryant. Third, my point is a all-star foward right now is cool. To get an all-star center is better. Now if Darko doesn't become an all-star, doesn't matter because we are Donald Trump(Pistons) and we can buy another all-star foward(Sheed) if need be , while still monitoring our investment to get a greater return and gain more stability in the long run.

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

the only argument that makes sense for me is that pistons gave up a chance to win now for a chance to win later.

that argument looks really good in hindsight - who would have thought, early in the season, that pistons could get sheed for essentially nothing? with a wallace and wallace frontcourt in place, adding melo to the mix... put it this way, i'm not even sure whether pacers could beat them

i know, pistons are contenders anyway without melo. but anyway you argue it, the pistons are a weaker team now with a non-playing darko than with a potentially high-scoring melo.

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

Seems unfair to me to criticize the Pistons for taking Darko. They have a great chance to get to the Finals. Haven't we all learned that it takes 4 years for some rookies

Passing up Carmello Anthony for Darko was a mistake. It's just that simple. If Detroit had Carmello Anthony now they would be the unquestioned masters of the NBA. Hand them the trophy.

However, since they don't have Mello, and instead have the 2004 version of Scott Haskins, there are serious questions regarding the Pistons. They will not beat Indy should they face them in the East playoffs (understand it, deal with it, move on) and they will have serious problems playing a team like NJ should they meet.

Joe Dumars is a decent GM, but he is terrible when it comes to the draft. Rodney White and Darko. Need I say more. Pistons fans saying Prince is a better fit are living in fantasy land. The main weakness of the Pistons is they do not have a go-to scorer, a creator on offense. Mello is that; and did I mention the fact that he's really, really young?

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

Seems unfair to me to criticize the Pistons for taking Darko. They have a great chance to get to the Finals. Haven't we all learned that it takes 4 years for some rookies

Passing up Carmello Anthony for Darko was a mistake. It's just that simple. If Detroit had Carmello Anthony now they would be the unquestioned masters of the NBA. Hand them the trophy.

However, since they don't have Mello, and instead have the 2004 version of Scott Haskins, there are serious questions regarding the Pistons. They will not beat Indy should they face them in the East playoffs (understand it, deal with it, move on) and they will have serious problems playing a team like NJ should they meet.

Joe Dumars is a decent GM, but he is terrible when it comes to the draft. Rodney White and Darko. Need I say more. Pistons fans saying Prince is a better fit are living in fantasy land. The main weakness of the Pistons is they do not have a go-to scorer, a creator on offense. Mello is that; and did I mention the fact that he's really, really young?

Pistons blew it not taking Mello. That simple.

Hehehe...I love it. The people who can see into the future. I wish I had that gift.

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

Seems unfair to me to criticize the Pistons for taking Darko. They have a great chance to get to the Finals. Haven't we all learned that it takes 4 years for some rookies

Passing up Carmello Anthony for Darko was a mistake. It's just that simple. If Detroit had Carmello Anthony now they would be the unquestioned masters of the NBA. Hand them the trophy.

However, since they don't have Mello, and instead have the 2004 version of Scott Haskins, there are serious questions regarding the Pistons. They will not beat Indy should they face them in the East playoffs (understand it, deal with it, move on) and they will have serious problems playing a team like NJ should they meet.

Joe Dumars is a decent GM, but he is terrible when it comes to the draft. Rodney White and Darko. Need I say more. Pistons fans saying Prince is a better fit are living in fantasy land. The main weakness of the Pistons is they do not have a go-to scorer, a creator on offense. Mello is that; and did I mention the fact that he's really, really young?

Pistons blew it not taking Mello. That simple.

Hehehe...I love it. The people who can see into the future. I wish I had that gift.

If you're here long enough, you'll learn to take whatever writerman- oops i mean Newyawk- says with a grain of salt. Everything he says is anti-Pistons, and he really doesn't live in reality, so don't let him get to you.

NewYawk's greatest hits:

-"Reggie is better than Rip Hamilton."

-"Rasheed and Ben are BAD defenders." Not just "not great," mind you, but BAD defenders.

-"Billups isn't good"

-"Al Harrington is better than Rasheed"

-"The Pacers would EASILY beat the Pistons in the playoffs."

i could go on, but whats the point?

It wasn't about being the team everyone loved, it was about beating the teams everyone else loved.

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

[quote="Kstat"][quote="Liquid Slap"]

If you're here long enough, you'll learn to take whatever writerman- oops i mean Newyawk- says with a grain of salt. Everything he says is anti-Pistons, and he really doesn't live in reality, so don't let him get to you.

NewYawk's greatest hits:

-"Reggie is better than Rip Hamilton."

-"Rasheed and Ben are BAD defenders." Not just "not great," mind you, but BAD defenders.

-"Billups isn't good"

-"Al Harrington is better than Rasheed"

-"The Pacers would EASILY beat the Pistons in the playoffs."

i could go on, but whats the point?

Again, if you're going to compare me to writerman, then I'm given full rights to compare you to a stinking pile of dog*****. I'll also rephrase your pathetic attempt to "misquote" me:

-Reggie Miller is better than Rip Hamilton. Ask Larry brown AND Rick Carlisle who'd they rather have. When you get yuor answer, kindly sit on it and spin.

-They are bad defenders, and when they schooled clobbered AGAIN in the playoffs, I'll expect to see a post by you apologizing for your pathetic homerism, and to me.

-He isn't. Average player.

-Not easily, but 4-2 is expected should they meet.

You could go on, but who ever cares what you say, aside from some other pathetic Piston homer.

Re: This one's for Kstat, Pistons Dynasty, Liquid Slap, et al.

"Somebody" was the Portland Trailblazers. Not the Pacers. And if you think Darko will become the next Jermaine O'Neal, you're high. In any case, it's a stupid comparison. Darko stinks. Mello is a star. The Detroit Pistons are not built for the future. They're built for now. they want to win a championship now, which was one of the reasons why Larry Brown was hired.

Darko MAY be a good player one day, but Mello already is a good player, and well on his way to being great. You didn't need a crystal ball to see that obvious fact.